Bloody Brotherhood!
by Seul Desir
Summary: Toad: Here is your Mission: Kill Rogue and anyone in your way. Only then will Mortimer disappear. P.S. Bleed her dry.
1. Sweet Silence

Mortimer Toynbee sat at the edge of a jagged cliff and stared out to the ocean—the somber ocean. He came to this spot whenever he wanted to escape his life. It was so quiet here, so silent. Mort didn't even move a muscle. He didn't want to disturb the stillness that embraced the vicinity. It almost felt like he was in another world when he was up there—almost. There was no movement. The usual howling wind didn't even dare to intrude upon the mutant's solitude. But it was hardly solitude inside of his head.

Questions reeled at his so fast, and his head pounded with anxiety. It was well after midnight, and Mort could still imagine the complaints of the Brotherhood

_Bickering. Bloody bickering is all they do!_

Mortimer clenched his fists and gritted his teeth at the very thought of the Brotherhood's complaints. So many problems there seemed to be! And sadly, there were no answers.

The one they called Toad inhaled deeply and closed his eyes. _Toad_. How had he been reduced to a mere amphibian? Well, anything would be greater than what he was before: just a pathetic boy that everyone sneered at and spat on. Just thinking about his past made Mort angry. Sure it was in the past—and sure he was more mature now—but all of the lies, harsh words, and awful faces spun around him and became unbelievably nauseating. Just because he was... _is_ green, didn't mean that he was any different. But it did. He_ was _different, and everyone wanted him to pay the price.

Mortimer scooted forward and hung his feet over the cliff. _He was Toad_. He was undeniably green, extremely agile, and not to mention, he possessed a tongue longer than a semi. Mort raised his greenish browns and let himself fall backwards onto the soft grass that surrounded him. Absently, he rolled the tiny blades in his hand as he thought of his current situation: The Brotherhood was small, tiny in fact. It consisted of only the four of them: Sabretooth, Mystique, Magneto, and Himself. Personally, Toad only liked one of them: Himself.

_Himself is a good guy._

Mort smirked as he lifted his body off of the cold ground and stood up.

He wasn't a very tall man. His brown-green hair was kept short and somewhat spiky. His overall appearance wasn't really intimidating, but whoever met with Toad and fought him, would never underestimate him again. When he was a young boy, Mort was lanky, and he supposed that was why everyone picked on him until he found out the real reason— his color. It all made him furious! He could not change his color, but his body was in his own hands. Mortimer went through intense training everyday and became extremely muscular; Martial Arts were a huge part of his day... life even.

Then Mortimer Toynbee became Toad, a part of the Brotherhood of mutants. He had never felt stronger in his life. What was in the past, he left there now. And he rarely ever thought of the people that had cut him down and stepped on him.

_I dare any of them to mess with me now, _Toad thought defiantly._ I _dare_ them._


	2. Bother

"Toad!"

Mortimer winced as the beautiful silence was broken. He turned around lazily to face one of the hundreds of people that he didn't want to see-Mystique- the morphing blue mutant. She gave Mort the chills sometimes, but he felt no feelings towards her. She would always try to rouse him into talking to her, or maybe fighting her. Fighting seemed to turn Mystique on, and he wasn't about to battle her anytime soon. She took many shapes, but Mort learned how to distinguish her. He would foil her every time, and she did _not_ like that at all. He turned away from her again.

"Toad," Mystique repeated seductively, "you have a curious fascination with dark and silent places."

She moved closer to him and placed one slender hand on his shoulder.

"If only you did." Mortimer spat at her. Mystique retreated her hand and narrowed her eyes.

"You know, Toad, we could make something of us if you only let down your guard for once."

She ran her hand down to the small of his back and sneered at his still figure. She could drive any man wild! What was so different about this one? Men threw themselves at her feet all the time, and she didn't even get a decent reply out of this one! This was driving her insane, but she perked up when she heard him speak:

"The only thing that "we" could make is a mutated bag of Skittles."

He turned to face her and look into her yellow eyes. She stared at him in bewilderment then smiled.

"Are you sure that you're Toad?" Then in an agitated tone, "Because I could swear that you are Tortoise! Why don't you get your head out of your damn shell?"

Mortimer shook his head at her. She just didn't understand. And if she did, she was doin' a bloody good job of keeping it hidden. He brushed past her and headed down the steep hill.

"Now where are you going?" Mort heard Mystique yell behind him.

"Somewhere where color doesn't exist."

Mystique stood there, dumbfounded, for a moment. Who had said anything about color?

"Stupid Brit, changing the damn subject." With that, she turned on her heel and walked away.

Mortimer walked on, thinking about why he was so depressed.

"Oh yeah," he snorted, "me life's a livin' 'ell. Well, that makes sense." He rolled his eyes at himself and stopped in his tracks.

_Why do I change when I'm around others? Why can't I show who I really am?_

He furiously shook his head in frustration. "Ruddy thoughts." He continued walking toward the Brotherhood fortress and his frown turned into a broad smile. Now it was time to be Toad. Toad the sarcastic, the happy-go-lucky murderer. Toad... the mutant. The smile grew wider as he bounded across the jagged rocks.

_I wonder what 'Tooth is up to._

It took no time for Toad to reach the fortress.

_It's all in the leap, _he snickered as he jumped to a second story window.

_Crash!_

"TOAD!" Sabretooth cursed as Toad let himself in. The green mutant laughed heartily as he watched his "brother" pick up broken cups and glass.

"Damn you, Toad! This is gonna take me forever to clean up!"

Toad snickered again. "Well, I'm sorry, Miss. I didn't know it was such a disaster." He bowed deeply and heard Sabretooth growl at his mockery:

"It wasn't a disaster until you showed up!" Toad shrugged it off and hopped onto a nearby desk.

"So... what'ya doin' anyway?" Toad asked in full curiosity, his British accent shining through.

"It's none of your business, unless you want to get pummeled." Sabretooth threatened.

"Ah, mate, remember: curiosity killed the cat, not the cute little toad." He winked at the man in front of him and smiled.

"God, you're a pain in the ass."

Toad cocked his head. "Now, 'Toothy, we shouldn't say such things. It might hurt someone's feelings." Toad batted his eyelashes mockingly.

"I'll show you hurt, you annoying frog..."

"Ah, ah, ah." Toad shook his finger at the mutant cat, "we mustn't engage ourselves in violent Brotherhood activity. Besides, Mags will have your hairy feline arse if you did _try_ to hurt me." He smirked proudly. Sabretooth tightened his fists and spoke through his fangs.

"I suggest then... _Toad_... that you get the _hell_ out of my sight before I tear off your legs and use your bleeding corpse for a puppet!" He was fuming, and way past angry, but Toad only beamed and cheerily said:

"As intriguing as that proposition is, I think I'll pass, mate." Sabretooth nodded and extended one razor claw in the direction of the door. Toad, however, crashed through the second window of the room and bounded away, leaving a cursing Sabretooth to himself.


	3. Bonds of Brotherhood

For Toad, teasing his feline friend was all good fun, but sometimes not enough. He didn't dwell on that, however, and leaped around to find something more interesting to do. Toad stopped bounding. Today was going to be a boring day. But how wrong he was.

"Alas!" He cried as he imitated a damsel in distress, "there is no one to annoy or kill. I shall wither and die!" He collapsed onto the dirty ground and smiled; life was wonderful.

Life was shit. Sabretooth muttered to himself as he collected the debris off of the ground.

He snarled, "Bloody this, bugger that, blah, blah, blah! I'd like to 'bloody' him up."

He smirked and narrowed his black eyes as he imagined the green burden gasping for breath, being choked with five deadly claws. Toad would try to plead for his life, but his cries would be muffled with his loud gasps. Sabretooth would then watch as the helpless mutant that he clutched went limp. That would be the end of his troubles. Well, maybe not, but it would be a good start.

'Tooth stored his violent scene away for the moment and continued to clean. The cleaning didn't take as long as he thought.

"Lucky for that son of a bitch amphibian. He better be thankin' his lucky star for this." He chuckled. "Lucky star! Some kind of words for a 7'4" mutant, give or take a few inches." He smirked as he looked down, "Or a few more."

He laughed briefly at himself but then stopped as his nose picked up a familiar smell. And thank God, it wasn't a frog.

Mystique laid her blue hand upon the brass knob and pushed the door open.

"Just who I wanted to see." She smiled as she walked into the room. She watched as Sabretooth smiled back at her.

"What are you up to, Blue?" Mystique smiled at his pet name for her and sat herself in a nearby chair.

"Nothing really. I caught Toad in his little 'sanctuary' again. You know, acting like he's someone different. The nerve. But he does seem different sometimes. Wouldn't you agree?" She peered at the feline with her entrancing yellow eyes. His warm smile turned into a sneer.

"He's always been a pain in the ass." Mystique raised her finger at him and yelled:

"ARSE, 'Tooth! Not 'ass'!" She snickered and rocked on the wooden chair she was on. She paused for a moment, considering something. "Sabe, do you think if Toad was given the option... he would leave us?"

Actual concern filled the shape-shifter's eyes as she gazed at her 'brother'. Sabretooth glanced at the floor and answered:

"I think he might." Realizing the passiveness in his voice, he growled, "Not like it matters. I hope he leaves! We don't need that son of a bitch around here." Mystique lowered her head and looked up at the "tough" man in front of her. He could be so difficult sometimes. But he was her Brother, and she loved him.

Sabretooth cocked his head at his 'sister'. "You're worried about something. It's not like the infamous Mystique to be worried." He watched her scoff at his remark as she continued to find the floor utterly fascinating.

"The Brotherhood is small, Sabe. The X-Men continue to grow, and we stay the same." Her voice becomes more enraged, "Why doesn't anyone want to be with us?" Her harsh voice makes Sabretooth nod his head and slightly frown.

"Don't concern your self with that. Soon, we will defeat the X-Men," then he added, "with or without Mort."

Mystique raised her head to look into Sabretooth's black eyes. Her look was of horror, and her scaled face crinkled.

"Mort? Yes... Mortimer is his name. I'd almost forgotten. And my name..." She paused and seemed to search for the name that had been lost to her. "Raven."

She appeared scared at the simple word, but then her yellow eyes flickered with anger. "I will not be that person. She is unknown to me. That would be betraying the Brotherhood, and I simply will not do it!" Sabretooth concernedly looked at her as she continued to speak:

"I will not let Toad betray us either."

And with that, she stormed out of the room and out of the fortress.

Toad lifted himself off of the ground and shuffled his way to the beach. He plopped himself into the water and rolled his eyes.

"Boring!" He yelled aloud. Magneto didn't have any plans for them today, much to Toad's chagrin. He always liked to be doing something, whether it was killing someone, fixing something, killing people, building things... He chuckled to himself and began to play with the sand. Suddenly, he whipped around as he sensed movement behind him. It was Mystique.

"We need to talk."


	4. Intrusion of Sanctuary

"We have to talk." Mystique looked down at Toad.

"'Bout what, love? Can't you see I'm engaged?" She looked at him, silently scolding his incompetence.

"I see that you're..." she paused and sneered at him, "...otherwise involved... but I happen to be more important. And, your life is at stake." She watched him raise his head to see her face fully, but the look on his face was not scared or threatened. It was that same annoyingly smug expression that he was famous for.

"Me life, you say?" Mystique nodded. "Then I suppose I should listen, eh?" He positioned himself in front of her like a little kid ready for story-time, grabbing the ends of his feet and rocking back and forth. Mystique sighed exasperatedly and gestured to him with her index finger before she turned on her heel.

"Follow me."

Toad followed the blue mutant for a while until they came to familiar territory. He felt the sudden urge to break her neck as he watched her gracefully turn around to meet his gaze.

"I thought we could talk here, seeing as you like it so much." Toad glared daggers at her.

_How dare she! This is my place!_ He narrowed his eyes in anger and restrained himself from whipping out his tongue and flinging her into a jagged rock. _She better have a bloody good reason for this._

Mystique noted his obvious irritation; she had succeeded in making him angry... quite possibly even murderous. She knew that she was treading on landmines, but she had to know! This was the only way to get him to stay. She didn't care if she hurt him, or made him stronger; he had to stay. She stared at him and gave a mischievous smirk.

"Excellent."

Toad grew angrier. "Yes, bloody good, Mystique." He clapped mockingly. "Now why don't you tell me why the hell you brought me here?" His harsh exclamations only made Mystique smile.

"Oh, Mortimer, you really disappoint me. I don't think you're good enough to be in the Brotherhood. I think you want to leave." Her voice was pure velvet as she spoke, but it cut through Mort like glass.

Mystique stood and waited with lingering impatience. He finally spoke:

"What do I have to do?" His voice cracked slightly and the sarcastic edge had disappeared. So clever of her to bring him to his sanctuary where he always felt disarmed. He held in a shudder as the scaled mutant parted her lips to speak again:

"That's my good Toady."

"You're the devil."

"No. No, you're wrong. That is where you don't grasp the situation, Toad. We are not the devil. All who oppose us are. We are fighting for mutant rights, and you're not gonna fucking help us!"

Her natural blue color prohibited the furious crimson to invade her face, but it was there, and she was definitely angry; she trembled in frustration. Never before had she felt so mad in her life! It's a good thing that she had forgotten how to cry years ago, or else she would be doing so right now—out of anger, of frustration, and most of all, sadness.

_Toad..._ _No... it's Mort... Mortimer!_ But Toad had won. He leaped to where Mystique stood.

"Don't be angry with me, Love. Now tell me... what you got on your mind?"

Mystique's yellow eyes glittered in satisfaction.

_He's not going to leave us._


	5. Vengeance

Sabretooth quickly turned his head as a soft _click_ from the door was heard. It would be hardly recognizable to mere humans, even most mutants, but his unique mutations allowed his ears to pick up minute sounds that would be otherwise 'over-looked'. A beautifully familiar scent swept past his nose and he closed his eyes, relishing in it. It was his favorite scent of all. It was the essence of happiness, love, death, sorrow, and pain. It was the very torture of the world that they lived in combined into one physical form. The smell lingered still, and finally, she walked through the door.

Sabretooth's hard and cruel face broke for a small smile as his 'sister' walked toward him. He realized that she and he had a kind of connection that he had never felt with anyone else before. It wasn't a romantic bond, but still loving. Maybe more than brother and sister, but no more. Sabretooth shook his head; he was confusing himself. Better to leave the thinking to someone who was good at it. He tuned back to the shape-shifter...

"Why Sabe, I do believe you're staring," Mystique faked a southern accent.

Sabretooth sighed and internally grinned. She could be so nice sometimes, and sweet... almost innocent. He scoffed at the thought:

_If innocence was murdering hundreds and plotting deadly schemes..._

His thoughts were interrupted by a somewhat worried voice:

"Sabe? You okay?"

He shook his head, dismissing his day dreaming, and smiled, his large fangs gleaming. "Never better."

Mort watched as the blue woman in front of him walked away. Yes, through their entire conversation, he had tried to only pretend to be Toad. But of course, Toad was stronger than Mortimer, and the mutant had won. The whole time he fought with himself, trying to let his sanctuary make him who he wanted to be: Mortimer Toynbee. Or was that what he _really_ wanted to be? He wasn't sure, and it was tearing him apart. He was afraid that if he didn't choose soon, he would be forced into only one identity, and it may be disastrous.

Slowly, he backed away from the spot he sat and pulled himself onto a large boulder protruding from the ground. He rested his chin on a fist and thought about the happenings of a few moments prior. Mystique had told him of a plan. A plan that would finally give the advantage to the Brotherhood, and Toad was the leading man. He had to perform the final act, a redeeming movement.

His mission was to steal then kill the one who stole powers—that girl. It would be simple enough.

_No! What are you saying? This is an innocent life!_

_'I've done it before. It's easy. Just focus on her pain, and watch yours just wash away.'_


	6. To the Briefing Room

Mystique strode towards a familiar steel door and paused. She glanced at a small metal device on the wall as a blue line cautiously paced back and forth. With a soft metallic "_whoosh" _the door slid up and disappeared; Mystique entered the freezing room. Boldly, she made her way into the darkness and halted as she reached, what she thought was, the center of the room. Suddenly, a blinding light flashed over the entire room, making the shape-shifter shade her eyes with both scaled hands. Smaller ones followed, flooding the room in horrid illumination, scaring away the darkness. Mystique tried to spare her eyes, but to no avail. The brightness stung her eyes making the piercing yellow color turn watery and clouded.

Suddenly, a hidden voice spoke to her, "Mystique!" The voice boomed loudly. Then in a much softer voice, "We're trying to fix the lights, would you mind moving?"

Mystique huffed and headed toward a small spiral staircase that her memory had reminded her of. Despite being blinded, she made her way upstairs and stopped with both hands on her hips. She waited until she saw Magneto's eyes sweep her way; her face was of utmost annoyance.

"Tell me, _Erik,_ was that for dramatic affect or permanently blinding me?"

There was a sharpness in her voice that Magneto didn't want to mess with. Instead, he laughed sheepishly and smiled.

"Dear, Mystique..." He paced toward her with open arms, "I didn't expect you so early." He watched as her eyes darted to a corner where Sabretooth stood.

"Well, you know I don't like to keep you waiting."

Erik smiled and released the blue female from his embrace. "There's a girl! Now, where is Toad?" Sabretooth sneered, baring his white fangs.

"Hasn't that been the question for ages?" His growl had an added bite to it when talking about his comrade.

Erik turned from Mystique to face the large man. "He _is_ the main individual for this mission, yes?"

Sabretooth didn't like where this was going. He watched as Magneto neared him.

"And as such, he would be of the _utmost IMPORTANCE!_" The feline was enraged by being yelled at, but he knew that he was no match for the man that stood before him. He decided to just let himself shiver a tad underneath his instructor's words.

Magneto righted himself and resumed speaking in his velvety voice. "Now, if he is not here soon, _you_ will go out and search for him. Is that understood?" Sabe nodded. "Good. That is all from you. Now, Mystique, come help me with these lights."

Sabretooth internally growled, not wishing for anymore reprimanding. He'd find that frog, all right...

Toad felt no rush at all; he took his leisurely time in getting to the Briefing Room. The thought that the others might be mad at him for being so late played in his mind. He loved "pissing them off" as they would say. He couldn't imagine getting any of them drunk! He shook his head at his silly comrades. What a way to put that he was making them angry! He messed with them so much because they couldn't hurt him; he was almost invincible to each of their gifts.

Magneto for example couldn't lift him up anywhere because Toad never carried any metal. But on the other hand, the old man _could_ fling metal objects his way and pelt him with steel rods and beams. But on the other hand of the other hand, Toad knew that he was quick; he could easily escape or lash out his long tongue to trip the metal-mover backward. Toad laughed haughtily and clasped his hands together. He imitated Magneto's voice:

"Why Toad! I'm so in love with you! You sweep me off my feet!" The green mutant shook his head at his so-called leader. "Bugger's such a queen, I wonder if he knows..." Toad shrugged and thought about the other two members of the Brotherhood.

Mystique- she was easy enough. Toad sniggered.

_In more ways than one..._

He could identify her in a snap, even when her eyes weren't giving away her secret. She always hated this of course. But did he care? No, he sure didn't.

Sabretooth, now there was a laugh. All brawn and no brains, Sabretooth was, unlike Toad who seemed to possess each of those traits. He could easily avoid the slow blows from the large feline. They might be slow, but Toad knew not to underestimate his strength, even though his own was a considerable rival. Well, considerably more than considerable.

Toad couldn't keep himself from thinking that he was better than the rest of the Brotherhood. Sometimes he felt like he wasn't even a part of them. He had always had dreams of becoming one of the X-Men, but those dreams were quickly stomped on and dismissed. If anyone found out that even the slightest thought of being an 'X-Man' danced in his mind, he would be shunned for the rest of his life by his own brothers- something he did not want at all. It wasn't as if he _wanted_ to be apart of the band of mutants... it was just...

Toad sighed. He supposed now that he was Mortimer. "For the time being at least."

He breathed, cursing himself silently. Did he want to be an X-Man? Did he want to leave the Brotherhood? What _did_ he want?

Mortimer sighed. Toad was so difficult.


	7. All Attention

Sooner or later, well, actually _much _later, Toad found himself in front of the huge barrier that led into the Briefing Room. Toad's devious mind thought up some fun as he approached the small machine on the wall. As soon as he saw the small blue line try to read his face, he quickly forced his feet into the air and stood on his hands. He smirked and chuckled aloud as the machine uttered its confusion.

"Error. Please face Recognition Initiator and stand still." Toad just wiggled his feet in response.

This was just too much fun! He now did upside-down pushups, his nose almost grazing the floor. The machine continued to scold him, but he really didn't notice.

"Warning: Initiator will send flaming death ray toward slimy frog and cremate him."

Toad still stood on his palms, having stopped pushups; it took a second for the meaning of the words to penetrate his brain. Still upside-down, Toad raised his head and saw Sabretooth staring down at him with bulging arms crossed. His eyes were cold and empty, but Toad thought he saw a slight glimmer of amusement in the feline's eyes as he spoke:

"Come on, we've been waiting for you long enough!" 'Tooth turned on his heel and Toad somersaulted onto his feet in one fluid movement.

Slowly, he sauntered into the room and hopped into his seat. Immediately, he was thrown dirty looks from Mystique. He returned them right back, as she was hanging on Magneto. She caught the obvious complaint and undraped her arms from around him and paced to her seat.

Sabretooth watched as Mystique gracefully sat down. It took his brain a minute to register that he needed to look at Magneto for the briefing, but eventually, he lazily turned his head to listen.

"As you all know," Magneto stated firmly, "the Brotherhood is unfortunately growing smaller."

Sabe heard Toad scoff, no doubt making fun of _something_ that Mags had said. He didn't try to figure it out; he knew he wouldn't get it. Magneto continued:

"The X-Men are exponentially growing larger."

'Tooth was confused. He growled as Toad peered his way for confirmation of this. Mags seemed to be oblivious, either that, or he just knew that he wouldn't be able to cease the constant "fights" between he two of them.

"This mission will finally bring us closer to power! This single mission will bring the X-Men to their knees, and they will join us in our cause."

Toad shook his head. Every mission was "going to bring them closer to power". He couldn't help thinking, however, that this mission would change everything.

Erik Lensher a.k.a Magneto glared at his brothers in a determined fashion. _This_ _plan would work._ Finally, the Brotherhood would be supreme, not that catastrophe of Xavier's. Pushing his vengeful thoughts away for the moment, he finally explained his master plan.

"As you all know, Mystique has been absent from the fortress for many hours scouting Xavier's mansion." He waited for somewhat respectable nods until he progressed.

"Every time we try to 'take the place' of someone close to anyone, we are always failed for lack of knowledge of the person that we, rather Mystique, is portraying. This time, she should be flawless. As long as she stays away from the Wolverine..." He glared at her shortly and she nodded deeply, her eyes downcast.

Magneto continued, "Mystique will dispose of the girl, Kitty, then take her place. She will lead the other girl to a specific area where Toad will be waiting." He faced the green mutant and saw that he held his entire attention.

_Amazing,_ Erik thought.

"Toad," Magneto held the amphibian's gaze. "This is the most important part, and it belongs to you."


	8. Confusion and Patience

Toad's liquid eyes floated over to meet Magneto's cold gray stare. What he had of an attention span was directed solely on the man in front of him. He wanted to know exactly how he was supposed to kill her. Toad focused on Magneto and hung on his every word as if they dripped with life itself.

"We have obtained the knowledge that Wolverine can bring the girl back to life, yes?" His eyes temporarily floated from person to person, or mutant to mutant, rather.

"So what we must do is stage another death. Sabretooth," the feline's head jerked up at the sharp sound of his name, "you and Mystique will perform this. Stall Wolverine for as long as possible." A malicious smile spread across his face and a metallic shine flashed across his eyes.

"If not kill him."

Every mutant smiled. This was their moment to shine and they would be victorious. Toad, however, wanted to know _exactly_ how he was to kill the girl. His patience paid off.

"Toad, this should give you ample time to dispose of the brat. If she is dead long before Wolverine finds you, she will be beyond hope. If he or anyone else arrives before she is dead, this mission is failed."

Toad silently urged Mags to continue. He didn't. Mystique and Sabretooth raised themselves out of their seats and made to exit the room. Toad still sat, in stunned silence. How could everyone just _leave_? He perked up as he heard Magneto's deep voice:

"The attack will commence in precisely three days. Until then, Mystique will be taking the place of Shadowcat. I have taken notice that Wolverine currently is _not_ at the mansion, so this is perfect placement." A cold stare now emitted from his eyes. "However, he will be back, and I'm trusting that none of you will fail me."

His voice was monotonous as he spoke, but somehow full of threat.

Toad watched as Mystique and Sabretooth left the room, obviously discussing the choreography for their "fight scene" in three days. Toad scoffed shortly. Like Sabretooth was going to actually _remember_ the right moves to do! For a minute, he thought he was alone, but in fact, Magneto did not leave. Toad stared at him with liquid eyes.

"Toad, I know that you have a lingering question in that troubled head of yours." He paced arrogantly around a steel chair, running his fingers over the back lightly. Toad could not hold it in any longer. He knew that Mags knew what he wanted to know. He stopped himself for a minute and backtracked to make sure what he was thinking made sense.

He sighed, _Did it ever?_

He felt Magneto's amused stare on him and the question could no longer be contained:

"How do you want her to die?"

Magneto smiled. This mission would kill two birds with one stone: Disabling the X-Men to a certain degree, and ensuring the loyalty of a certain member of the Brotherhood. Again, he smiled that haughty smile.

"You may do whatever you want with her, my green friend." He stared into Toad's eyes, sensing that the amphibian wanted, _needed_, more information. He could not simply leave Toad in the dark.

Toad wanted more. He ran his eyes across Magneto's again and again, hoping to find some lost lore. But he internally sighed, knowing the only way he would come to know more, is if Magneto chose to let him. Thankfully, the low voice spoke again, echoing into his ears:

"You must be sure to drain her blood. Let it flow until you are certain that the majority of it has spilt. Then," his eyes flashed dangerously, "do what you will."

And with that, Magneto turned on his heel, his cape swishing violently behind him. Toad watched him head toward the door. But just before the tall man completely vanished, he elegantly spun around and looked Toad dead in the eye. The green mutant's heart skipped a beat. _There was more_.

Magneto's hand played with the metal wall adjacent to him, a sly smirk upon his face.

"We are counting on you Toad, my brother." Again, Magneto started to turn around as if some lingering thought existed still. He spoke it as a carefree afterthought, "Oh, and Toad." The amphibian gazed up. "Be creative."

And with that, he was gone.


	9. Personal Effects

Sabretooth drummed his finger absently on the table that he sat at. The _metal_ table. The glare hurt his eyes all the time. He was a creature of the night, and the fucking glare could be a substitute for the sun! No matter. The majority of the table's surface was housing various types of the best thing on Earth: Alcohol.

"Hello, Señor Quervo, Mr. Daniels..." He pretended to tip a hat in a southern gentleman style and continued to speak to his bottles of liquor. It almost seemed as if he was singing a children's song:

"Tequila, Scotch, Rum, and Daiquiri..." He paused to gulp the substances down. "...Margarita, Sex on the Beach... No, make that _rough_ Sex on the Beach."

He continued with his song, and sometimes later, he was passed out with good ol' Mr. Bean, empty, in his oversized hand. His face was smashed into the table, and his free hand was draped around the back of his neck.

What a sight this was. She wished she had a camera. 'Tooth was completely wasted; she didn't see him waking up anytime soon. Cringing at the thought of the massive hangover he would have in the morning, Mystique laughed and departed from the room and headed out of the fortress. Today, Kitty Pryde would die. Today was the start of the Brotherhood's revenge.

Erik found his way to his study and noticed that it was exactly how he had left it- immaculate. He couldn't stand clutter, hence the lack of furniture in every room. Lazily, he sauntered over to an elegant meal chair and used his gift to position it into a more comfortable position. He sat down almost royally and traced small shapes on the arm of his chair. He could not help but think that somehow, this mission was going to go terribly wrong. He dismissed the thought. If anyone could manipulate Rogue, it was Mystique. Out of everyone, who was better to crush the pest that was Wolverine, than Sabretooth? And if anyone could finish their Master Plan, who better than...

Erik thought for a moment. Yes, who better? Who could end this like Toad? Still, Lensher held some doubt.

"But that is not to interfere!" He yelled aloud to no one. He thought, _The mission will be a success and Toad will lead us into Glory._

In two blinks of an eye, Mystique transformed. She had found a stray resident of the school, and had quickly broken his neck and dumped him into some nearby bushes. With not so much as a shrug, she (now he) moseyed up to the mansion in the fashion that she had seen the boy walk. She became annoyed quickly, for his arms were abnormally long and they swung entirely too much.

Mystique felt between her newly formed legs and considered:

_Oh, now I understand... that would be what the arms were compensating for,_she told herself in a matter-of-fact tone. Her smirk quickly died away as she approached the entrance to the manor.

_Damn._ It was locked. _Of all the times..._ Mystique's thoughts were interrupted as she felt someone tap lightly on her shoulder.

It was her first instinct to whip around and break whoever's neck it was behind her, but she stayed "in character" and turned around slowly. Her stomach lurched inside as she saw who was right next to her.


	10. Encounter

It was the girl; the one they were to kill. She was within reach! Right now, she could just grab the little bitch and twist her neck- in a split second! But her loyalty lied with the Brotherhood, and she let her combat mode disengage. The brat spoke:

"Terry, don't you know it's Free Day? No one's allowed inside, sugah. Professor X's orders, 'Everyone needs some fresh air'." She paused and peered at Mystique for a moment and said concernedly, "Terr', Hun, you okay, sugar?" Mystique couldn't believe how sweet this girl was.

_Disgusting,_ she thought. Quickly Mystique took a breath and spoke to Rogue:

"Uh... yeah. I'm fine. I must have forgotten."

The shape-shifter hoped that she had somewhat sounded like the former occupant of the body that she was using. It wasn't like she gave the kid a chance to speak before she killed him... A sigh of relief almost escaped her lips as Rogue spoke to her again:

"Just like you, Terr', always forgetting something so important so quickly! Well, come on, sugah, let's go for a walk."

Mystique could not believe her luck. Their objective could be accomplished right here, right now! But no- her mind scolded her for proposing such an idea. If she did this now, she would never be able to look into Erik's eyes ever again. She would be an abomination to her own kind as well as the human race. For she was not human... oh no. She could appear to be, but she knew she really wasn't.

Slowly, Mystique made her temporary body smile meekly and nod; she followed the target.

Soon, Mystique found herself in the midst of all of the students. Rogue had led her to a party that was being held. The shape-shifter whipped her head around wildly. There was laughing. Everyone wore a smile. Mystique shook her head at all of the cheeriness. How could all of these people be happy at the exact same time? Again she shook "Terry's" head. There were just some things that she would never understand.

Victory, however, was near, and there was nothing more simple to understand than that.

Scott Summers emerged from the manor and turned to lock the door back up. Today was a day of relaxation, and boy was he relaxed! He had just finished his little romantic session with his fiancé, Jean ('Well, not _little_...), and let's just say he exhausted her.

Scott smiled. _I don't think she'll be joining us in the festivities today. Or tomorrow..._

He smiled at himself and relished in his arrogance for a moment. _Damn, she's a good lover._ And he was equally matched. Together, they made one _hell_ of a scene! Maybe he'd tape them one day. It might prove to be interesting later.

Soon, Scott found himself nearing the party. _Time to get rid of all erotic thoughts, Summers._ And he did just that.

Numerous yells were directed his way; he was used to that sort of thing: Hormone-raging teenagers that would do anything to get into his pants...

"What about 'pants', Scott?" He looked back up from the ground and there was Kitty Pryde.

"Morning, Kitty!" He exclaimed and clapped his hand on her shoulder. Kitty was about the only girl at the school who didn't swoon over him, or find him sexually attractive. Yes, he thought this was odd, but it was nice to have _someone_ of the opposite sex to talk to without having to wade out of an Olympic-size pool of saliva afterwards. Now don't get him wrong, he loves the attention and tormenting girls, but he needed some platonic relationships as well.

He smiled even broader as Pryde pulled him in for a hug. He noticed, looking around, that there were many girls staring, looking hopeful, or giving Kitty the evil eye.

"So, what's up, handsome?" Kitty beamed as she let go of him.

Scott replied nonchalantly, "Nothin' too much, gorgeous, how 'bout yourself?" He held out his arm for her and she accepted it.

"Hmm... the day is nice, but I'd rather be indoors..." Scott laughed heartily.

"Kitty Pryde... indoors? Now there's something different!" She shook her head at him and smiled, letting her eyes wander the grounds. Scott almost jumped as she exclaimed.

"Hey, look! It's Rogue and Terry!"

Kitty released Scott's arm and ran toward her friends.

"Marie! Terry!" At full speed, she collided with the two people in front of her, making them all tumble to the ground. Laughs erupted from Rogue and Kitty, but Terry wasn't even smiling.

"Terr', what's wrong? You okay?" Kitty's voice was full of concern as she looked at her friend's blank face. Actually, he looked somewhat annoyed. She studied his face for another few moments and finally, his lips broke to make a truthful smile.

"Hey, Kit; just messin' around!" This made Kitty feel better; he actually called her 'Kit'! He'd never done that before, but she was glad that he did.


	11. Embarrassment of Pryde

Mystique lifted herself off of the ground and felt murderous. How long could she subdue her anger? This torture was driving her insane! 'It's only three days.' Yes, but three days could be a very long time. Mystique used her disguised arms to brush off her temporary body and prepared to stare daggers into whoever it was that made her fall. 

The sound, that _terrible_ sound, of giddy laughter ceased, and Mystique saw exactly who had run into her. For the second time that day, her stomach lurched as she looked at _her_ target- Kitty Pryde, Shadowcat. Again, her combat instinct kicked in, but she had to contain it once again. The brat spoke to her. She didn't feel like replying, but her duty was to Magneto. "Hey, Kit, just messin' around!" Mystique put on a perfectly misleading smile. After all of the bodies she had used, she had perfected the art of facial expressions. No doubt, the little bitch was deceived.

Mystique was about to make a move on Kitty, when Cyclops came into view. 'Shit.' Mystique thought. This was not good; she hoped that he would go away quickly. The atmosphere was too friendly; Mystique thought she was going to be suffocated underneath the goodness of it all. She was surrounded by the enemy, but she needed to relax, needed to focus on the mission. Rogue spoke next, "Hey Scott! You up to anything?" The man in ruby-quartz glasses spoke, "Just takin' it easy. How bout you, Terry? How's the new computer going?" 

Mystique couldn't help but smile. Now _this_ was something that she knew about! "Well, I've fixed the drive, added some more gigs. The D-drive malfunctioned, but nothing beyond repair. I need to work on my firewalls and encryption codes, but besides that, all is well." Mystique felt Cyclops slap his hand on her shoulder, "Just like you, Terr'- don't speak unless you need to brag about your computer skills!" He smiled. Mystique grew frustrated inside. 'Why does everyone say "just like you, Terr'." all the time? Of _course_ it's just like him, because it _is_ him!' Well, actually, she was him, but they didn't need to know that.

Sometime later, the school was opened back up and everyone rushed back inside. Mystique was right on Kitty's tail. 'No pun intended.' The shape-shifter smirked as she realized that Pryde was now heading down an empty hallway. "Kitty!" 'Goddamn, _Goddamn, GODDAMN!_' Why NOW? It was Iceman, Bobby Drake. What the hell was he doing here? 'Shouldn't he be with his little un-fuckable girlfriend, Rogue?' Mystique decided to wait until Iceman went away before she made any moves. 

"Kitty, do you know where Rogue is? She's been avoiding me all day." Kitty shrugged, "Sorry, Bobby, don't know where she went." Bobby looked down and solemnly nodded his head, "Oh, well... thanks anyway." Pryde nodded as well and turned back around; Iceman disappeared into another corridor. This was Mystique's time to act. 'Shadowcat will die _tonight_.' 

"Kitty!" Mystique called out in Terry's voice and watched as the girl slowly turned around. "Oh, hello Terry." Her face shown in an evident blush and Mystique felt that this would be easier than she thought. 'So, the little slut has a crush...' Shadowcat had stopped, but Mystique drew nearer. She put on her most seductive smile and reached for Kitty's hand. With her other hand, she gently massaged Kitty's. Mystique could tell that the girl was uneasy. The scaled mutant loved every moment of it. She continued to rub Kitty's hand, then looked straight into her eyes. The first thing that came to Mystique's mind was, 'Come on, let's go fuck', but she somehow thought that this Terry-character wasn't as bold as she was. So, she decided to play it up a little, "Kitty, would you do me the honor of taking a walk with me?" Mystique noticed that Pryde's blush grew tremendously as she fumbled for the words to say. The imposter was amused at the outcome, for all Kitty could do, was breathe a small, "Yes."

Hook, line, and sinker.

"Wonderful. Follow me." Mystique led Kitty back outside from the front entrance and out into the gardens. "Terry, where are we going?" Kitty spoke as she clung to "Terry's" arm. Mystique answered casually, "Off-grounds. I don't want anyone to be around." Well, that was the truth, wasn't it?

Mystique led Shadowcat past the front gates and into the woods beyond. "I've got just the place." She assured Kitty. "For what?" The girls voice was trembling. Mystique realized that the girl was thinking about sex, which was understandable. This 'Terry' wasn't an ugly guy. Although he did have a small dick... 'I'm sure he uses it well.' The crude mutant thought as she led Kitty farther into the woods.

Soon, the shape-shifter had succeeded in leading Shadowcat a decent distance away from the mansion. Mystique could feel that the girl was trembling again, but she couldn't decide if it was out of fear, or plain desire. In any case, she was anxious. "So," Mystique heard the little brat speak, "why are we so far away?" Her voice was innocent, but lined with a sexual edge. Mystique decided to play along for the moment. She strode closer to Kitty and clasped her hand, "Because I don't want anyone to hear you scream." Mystique, again, was telling the truth, but she noticed that she was keeping Pryde completely in the dark. 

The girl's face was even hotter than before as Mystique stroked her cheek. 'This is too easy.' The shape-shifter loved leading the girl on like this- messing with her already raging hormones. 'But then,' Mystique thought evilly, 'I'll kill her, take her place, and Rogue will be as good as dead.'

Suddenly, Mystique's thoughts were interrupted by a warm mouth on top of hers. This caught her off-guard and she was momentarily stunned as the girl's tongue roamed inside of her mouth. For a second, Mystique was intrigued, but remembering who she was, and what she came there to for, she broke the kiss. Kitty peered at her through worried eyes, "What's wrong, Terry?" Mystique smiled cruelly, allowing her menacing yellow eyes to flash at the unsuspecting girl.

Immediately, Pryde backed away, eyes wide with fear. "You... I..." Mystique could almost feel the girl's rapid heart beat. She relished in the embarrassment of Pryde. "Yes," the blue mutant purred, her yellow eyes filled with laughter, "you've just kissed a girl. Congratulations. And oh my! She's a 'bad-guy'! Whatever are you to do?" Another gleam of danger flicked across her eyes, "Are you going to run away... phase through some trees and try to find your way to the mansion?" She scoffed and bent toward Kitty's ear. She whispered, "Honey, we're farther than you think." She paused for a moment, letting the complete horror of the situation settle itself into the foolish girl's brain. "Isn't it wonderful? See what you get, being an 'X-Man'?" She looked the girl dead in the eye, "Bad things happen." 

Kitty now shook under her piercing gaze. She stumbled in her words as she spoke, "What... what did you do to Terry?" Mystique's eyes glittered as she bent toward Kitty again, "Well, here, let me show you." She fiercely grabbed the girl's neck and _snap_. Kitty Pryde was dead.

Quickly, Mystique hid the body and took her new form. "Aaah." She moaned as if she just somehow got rid of a heavy burden. "It's nice to be a woman again." She looked down at herself and felt her chest. Suddenly, she was annoyed, "Does everyone in this damn school have small packages?" She yelled at no one, but then recomposed herself. And with not so much as a hint of regret, the new Kitty Pryde made her way back to the mansion.


	12. Bloody Hell

Mortimer yawned. Then just for something new, he yawned again. Mystique's first day was up and he wondered how far she had gone. Had she found Shadowcat? Had she taken her place? He also wondered if she had been discovered. Would she get away if caught? How would they treat her?  


Mortimer's thoughts now dwelled on his own behalf. He thought about what Magneto had told him earlier, and immediately, his thought began to flow rapidly through his troubled mind. Shaking them away, he paced back and forth anxiously. He couldn't kill an innocent girl! But his worrying soon ceased as he felt Toad trying to take over his body.

_'Technically, you can.' _Whispered a low and teasing voice in his mind.

"Toad, go away." Mort seemingly threatened to no one.

_'You think you can get rid of me that easy? Think again, Love. It won't be long, you know.' _The malicious voice whispered to him_, 'You can't keep me back for much longer.'_

Mort clenched his fists and fought back his rage.

_'Yes, that's right. Feed me more of the glorious rage and hate that you possess. You can't win, Mortimer. Let me out.'_

Sweat dropped off of Mort's face. He assumed the madness had stopped when:

'_FREE ME!'_

Mortimer, taken by surprise, fell backwards at the force of the words and clutched his throbbing head in agony. There was nothing that he could do. The murderous part of him begged to be let out, and he couldn't ignore it for much longer.

Sabretooth woke up who knows how much later. His head was hurting and the glare from the metal table hurt his eyes even more now when he looked up from the crook of his arm. He growled in annoyance, shielding his light-sensitive eyes. "God damn table." He murmured. Lazily, he picked himself out of the chair and stumbled over to a door. Which one it was... he wasn't quite sure. All he knew was that his head hurt like a bitch.

Sooner or later, the drunken felinoid found his room. He bumped into the walls on his way and fumbled with the knob. He would spend the rest of the day sleeping indoors. He had a strange inkling that a monstrous hangover was ready to greet him at any moment. And boy was he right!

Think of a normal hangover. Now think of the vomiting, the god-forsaken weariness, and those terrible eye-splitting headaches. A human hangover, Sabretooth would be able to handle with definite ease. Now _this_ was his own version. If a normal human would have consumed as much alcohol as he did, their whole family would be dead. Hell... and their neighbors, too! This particular mutant found himself visiting the bathroom every few minutes. Finally, he just collapsed by the toilet and hasn't moved since.

Meanwhile, Mystique found herself inside of the manor, not quite sure where to go. She looked around the mansion blankly, debating on which direction to go. "Kitty?" A voice to her left almost made her jump as she spun to see whom it was. Ororo Munroe- Storm. The white-haired witch looked at her with concerned eyes. Her accented words lightly rolled off of her tongue as she spoke. "What are you doing? You look lost." Mystique dug in her mind for an excuse, but nothing sounded completely logical. Quickly, she spat something out, "I was supposed to meet Rogue somewhere, but I'm not sure where she went." The shape-shifter internally held her breath and Storm looked her over. A sudden smile came across the woman's face, "I saw them a minute ago, Rogue and Jubilee; they're in the game room, Dear."

Mystique silently cursed the woman. That _didn't_ help! She noticed that Storm's eyebrows furrowed at her, "Kitty, are you all right? Would you like to go to the MedLab?" Mystique shook Kitty's head, "I'm sorry, Storm. It's just... I'm feeling a little lost. Mind walking with me to the game room?" _Nice. _Mystique thought cruelly. _Very nice_. Storm complied and led who she thought was Kitty Pryde to the room. _Even Better._

As soon as she had entered the room, her acute sense of sight found the other two girls, sitting on a white sofa, giggling. 'Here we go.' Mystique rolled her eyes as she walked toward the girls. Before she got too far, however, she turned about and thanked Storm. She had to stay in character if she wanted this to work!

"Kitty!" Both girls ran to hug Mystique as she neared where they were sitting. Rogue was the first to speak, "Where've you been, sugah? We've been worried about you!" The disguised mutant shrugged her shoulders and smiled cheerily, "I just had something to take care of." All of them laughed. But little did they know that two of their friends had already been killed. "Well, it's nice that you have time to do other things, but in case you didn't remember, we have exams tomorrow!" Rogue chimed in, "Yeah! Are you ready to study?" Horror claimed Mystique. She wasn't planning on going to school. She hadn't been told that there were... _exams_.

Rogue, noticing the new look on her friend's face, laughed and draped her gloved arm over "Kitty's" shoulder. "You're tellin' me, hunny. These exams won't be easy! But we've still gotta study!" Mystique found herself being led to the nearest table where massive books had been stacked neatly. She had never really gone to school as a child. How was she supposed to survive it as someone else?

Hours later, Mystique's hidden yellow eyes were starting to droop. All three girls yawned and agreed that it was time to go to bed.

As Rogue and Jubilee walked toward their dorm, Mystique made careful note of their exact route. No doubt she'd need to remember this.

Mortimer sat with his feet dangling over the side of the huge cliff. He really needed this, this time alone. He needed to think, and above all, he needed to find answers. Too bad there was no one to give them to him.

He sighed dejectedly and embraced his moment where Toad, Magneto, Mystique, and Sabretooth were mere memories- things of the past. But he could not hide forever, and soon, he would have to make his choice.


	13. Marked for Death

Two days and counting.

Mortimer performed small tasks around the stronghold while time crept by. He found himself unable to keep still during the day. He repaired things, cleaned, paced, washed... It was madness! Only when he wet to his sanctuary did he ever find any peace.

Toad visited him more often than ever, trying to make him give in, pushing Mortimer to the brink of sanity. The brink was not a pleasant place. He found himself not able to sleep or eat. At night, he would perform his menial chores while small fragments of time passed. In two days he would have to contribute to the mission. In two days, Mortimer would decide who he wanted to be.

Mystique sauntered into the classroom and took note of how spacious it was. There were numerous windows that let the morning light pour in, and the entirety of the room was illuminated. Mystique also noted how different it was from the Brotherhood stronghold. Pushing away those thoughts, she took a seat next to Rogue and Jubilee. The shape shifter's heart beat rapidly and she felt nauseous.

"Don't worry, Kit." A loud voice said. "We're all nervous." Mystique smiled meekly at Jubilee and slouched in her chair. Was that an imitation or did Mystique really just smile at the enemy? Shaking her head, another question popped up: How was she going to do this?

She could either rush through it and bring disgrace to the name of Kitty Pryde, or actually take the time to let her, _Mystique_, truly answer the questions. The shape shifter fumbled in her thoughts and bit her lip, wondering, fearing what she was going to do. It couldn't hurt to answer the questions! "Why not?" Mystique thought and smiled.

"It seems like someone is ready for the exam." Mystique shot Kitty's head up in the direction of the voice. It was Jean Grey. Mystique raised an eyebrow at the woman and smirked. So this was the woman that Cyclops had a hard-on for.

Jean smiled somewhat nervously at the girl in front of her. She had never seen Kitty smile like that before. She'd seen it somewhere, but she couldn't place her finger on it. 'Logan.' She concluded. 'I'm just thinking about Logan.' With a newfound comfort, Jean passed out the exams and went to her desk.

Mystique opened the front page to her test and her jaw dropped. What the hell was this?

It wasn't a regular exam. There was no math, no annoying bubbles to fill in... It was five questions dealing with... 'Morality, common sense, and inner being?' What kind of a trick was this?

She read the first question: 'What makes a person, or entity, strong?'

"Shit." Mystique whispered. How was she supposed to know? Last night, she and the girls studied, but she didn't know that these types of questions were the _only_ things on the test! She exhaled slowly and began to think, 'Okay, think like an 'X-Man'. Pretend you're someone with morals- principles. You've spent your whole life with the bald man in the wheelchair learning how to be a goody-goody.'

Thoroughly done psyching herself out, Mystique began to write.

Sabretooth groaned and lifted his shaggy head of the toilet seat. Quickly, he began to hurl.

He watched as the orange-colored chunks collided with the water and made tiny splashes; the droplets of water found their way to Sabretooth's face and ran slowly through his facial hair. The large mutant ceased to spew and his over-sized hand somehow found the handle attached to the toilet. Dizziness overcame him as he watched the water spiral downward, forming into a small vortex of orange and yellow.

Exhausted, Sabe whipped his face and fell back onto the toilet.

The two painful hours finally ticked away as Mystique absently drummed her fingers on her desk. She'd been finished with the five questions in no time and resorted to drowsily watching the second hand slowly traverse around the roman numerals on the face. It seemed like an eternity before Jean Grey rose from her seat and ordered them all to 'put their writing utensils down and pass up their exam sheets.'

'Like anyone else is _still_ taking this stupid test anymore.' Mystique thought darkly. But to her surprise, she heard many people's pencils hastily scribbling more words.

The imposter shook her head in disbelief. The exam was _five questions long_! How could anyone spend _two hours_ on such a simple test? Mystique's disguised eyes flashed toward Jean Grey as the redhead approached Mystique's desk. "Easy for you, Kitty? I noticed that you finished rather quickly."

And then that bone-chilling smile.

Jean shivered internally as Kitty smiled at her. Her heart beat faster as the adrenaline in her body flowed. She knew that smile and had a sneaking suspicion that it didn't belong to Logan.

Mystique relished in Jean's silence, lapping up the sweet aroma of fear. The woman wasn't as stupid as the shape shifter had thought- she knew something was wrong. Quickly dismissing the minute moment of praise for her enemy, Mystique's thoughts suddenly turned dark as she contemplated a way to silence the wench.

Mystique saw herself disposing of the X-Woman quickly by snapping her neck, but then she reconsidered. She was tired of breaking necks. The member of the Brotherhood wanted to spice up her murdering. And suddenly, she had an idea.

After all of the papers had been collected, Jean dismissed the class. In a loud bustle, the students hastily complied and soon only Jean was left. She had thought about telling Kitty to stay, but something inside told Jean that she didn't want to be alone with that particular student. Tidying up in a perfunctory manner, Jean exited the classroom with exam papers in the crook of her arm, and headed to where Scott would surely be.

Mystique, cloaked in her borrowed for watched Rogue and Jubilee as they chatted about the exam. "Oh my gosh, I thought it was so hard!" Squealed Jubilee, her dark eyes wide. Rogue nodded and turned to Mystique. "What question did you think was the hardest, Kit?"

'None, you whiney bitch.' Mystique thought wickedly. But her mouth emitted different words, "Ah, number three was the worst! I absolutely hated it!" She watched as the other two girls continued to giggle. It seemed that Mystique was getting better at this teenager business. Only one more day after this, and the X-Men would be on their knees.

Mortimer just couldn't take it anymore! He had to go to the mansion and see exactly what was going on. Magneto wouldn't be happy about his little excursion, but it was something that Mortimer had to do- for his own sanity. It was only midday when he slunk through the dark hallways.

Down the corridor, Mort could make out the unmistakable sounds of a toilet being flushed after an immense amount of puking. "Sabe's drunk _again_." Mort muttered, still progressing toward the front door. There were scarce amount of windows in the fortress to sneak out of and the front door was the closest to where his boat was anyway. Being deathly silent, Mort slipped out of the door, jumped into his boat, and was off.

Magneto stood rigid and watched Toad speed away to main land. Easily, he could have risen the boat in mid-air and brought the amphibian back to the island. But he casually dismissed the idea and observed the vessel turn into a mere dot against the horizon. "So it begins." Magneto whispered dryly. 'So it begins.'

Logan inhaled the cold air deeply into his lungs. Nonchalantly, he twirled his car keys around a finger and thought of the mansion. He couldn't wait to see the looks on everyone's faces when they saw him! He'd been away on some small matter of business, and now it was time to go home. No doubt, he would be back in no more than a day.


	14. Mistaken Identity

Mortimer killed the engine as the boat neared the docks. Quickly jumping the mediocre fifteen feet, he tied a rope around a post and left his boat to await his return.

Pulling the bill of his hat down to cover his green complexion, Mort made his way toward the main road and hailed a taxi. Silently, he waited for a car to come and pick him up. Soon enough, a horrible mustard-colored automobile pulled up beside him and Mort slid into the cushioned seat and told the driver where he wanted to go. "No problem." Said the man, "I know exactly where that is." And Mortimer was off.

It had been roughly a three and a half hour trip from the Brotherhood Island to the main land. Exhausted from the morning sun beating down on him, Mortimer sank into his seat and closed his eyes. He thought about his part in the mission: _How was he going to do this?_ But Toad only scoffed at him and made Mortimer feel even worse. '_You know it's easy. I told you I would take care of everything... if you'd only let me free!'_

Mort shook his head. 'Like _that_ was ever gonna happen.' He didn't want Toad to run amok. Or did he? In no time, the horrid little cab pulled up just outside the gates to Xavier's "School for the Gifted", just out of sight as Mortimer had instructed. "It's a...um... surprise." He muttered to the driver shortly.

Absently, he threw the cabby some random bills and waited for him to drive away. More than happy to be away from Mortimer, the driver sped off hurriedly.

'So this is the X-Men establishment...' Mortimer thought, peering past the open iron gate. He thought it was odd that the gate was open; in fact, it seemed to beckon Mort in. Curiously, Mortimer slunk through the entrance and dove immediately into the foliage. He wanted to know everything that was going on. _Everything_.

It was now the afternoon and Mystique felt her stomach rumble with hunger. Beside her, Rogue and Jubilee clutched their bellies as well. "Oh, I'm _so_ hungry!" Rogue whined. Surprisingly, Mystique didn't find it as annoying as she once did. Jubilee nodded in agreement, "Yeah, let's get to the food before anyone else does!" Quickly, the three girls ran down the corridor and into the dining hall.

When the three teenage girls reached their destination, they saw that they weren't the only ones with the idea to come early. Jubilee sighed and rubbed her growling stomach, "Aw, man! I think my belly's gonna cave in! I can't wait that long for food." Rogue put a sympathetic smile on her face for Jubilee _and_ herself. "I know, Jubes. I'm starving too."

Mystique felt compelled to do something. She could go back into the kitchen, steal some food... Was there a penalty for that? The shape shifter wondered this privately. A tap on her shoulder made Mystique lose track of her thoughts, "Kit? Whatcha thinkin' about?" Mystique smiled mischievously at her "friend" and whispered, "I'll be right back." Disappearing into the crowd, Mystique left a bewildered Rogue and Jubilee to themselves.

Soon, the disguised intruder found herself inside of the kitchen. Stealthily, she made her way toward the smell of fresh-baked food. Glancing around, Mystique found a large bag, some plastic containers, and forks. Quickly, she began to fill the bag with bread, butter, and fruit. The plastic containers she filled with egg noodles covered in a mushroom chicken sauce. Satisfied with the weight of her parcel, Mystique turned to exit the kitchen when a loud voice from behind her called out, "Hey! What do you think you're doing? I'll see you get in trouble for this!"

The shape shifter made sure not to turn around so the man couldn't see her face. Instead, she back flipped, gaining amazing height and distance. In a flash, she was over the man's head. Quickly, she wrapped one of her arms under his, clasping that hand with the other that was draped over her prey's neck. In no time at all, the man fell to floor, unconscious, as Mystique casually exited the room through an adjacent window.

Crawling back into the manor, Mystique beckoned to Rogue and Jubilee. Puzzled, both mutants followed "Kitty" to their dorm room. When they were all safely inside, Mystique exposed her stolen goods to them.

"How...!" Jubilee was in utter shock. Rogue just shook her head and smiled. This made Mystique happy; she had gained their trust. 'But,' she thought to herself, 'will this make it harder for me to accept their deaths?' Shaking that ridiculous thought aside, Mystique urged the two other girls to dig in. They spent the next two hours eating and laughing.

Scott Summers smiled merrily as he walked into the dining hall. All of the happy faces made him feel likewise and he couldn't keep the grin off of his face. Waving to a few students that called out his name, Scott entered the kitchen and froze at what he saw.

The cook lay on the floor. _Dead_? Scott hoped it wasn't so. Quickly, he ran over to the man and felt his pulse. 'Good.' He sighed internally, 'still alive.' Slinging one of the man's arms over his shoulder, Cyclops exited through the backdoor of the kitchen to take the matter up with Xavier.

Charles sat in his wheelchair, his face showing signs of great thought as Scott explained to him what happened.

"I don't know, Professor. I came into the kitchen and there he was... just lying there." Cyclops shrugged his shoulders in shame, "I wish I was there to stop whoever did this." Xavier only shook his head slightly, "It wasn't your fault, Scott. Whoever did this to him must have snuck by everyone else and entered the kitchen. I will consult with him about the matter when he regains consciousness and find out exactly what happened. Maybe he can inform us on who did this to him." Xavier stopped and took a much needed breath and Scott smiled, "Yes, Professor." Silently, Summers exited the office and went to find Jean.

Charles Xavier sat in deep thought for a moment. Who could have done this to the poor cook? Suddenly, the man lying on a chaise lounge across from Xavier began to stir. Charles straightened himself and began to talk to the man in soothingly deep tones. "I apologize, sir. I'm afraid you've had frightful experience some time ago." The cook lazily raised himself up and scratched his head, "Oh, hello Professor. What am I doing here?" He looked around the room in confusion, getting his bearings. 

Xavier let the man have some time to think and then explained.

"Oh, yeah. I remember that." The cook began. "She was stealing food, she was! I came to stop her, but she back flipped over my head and put me in a headlock. I thought she was gonna kill me!"

Xavier processed his thoughts for a moment and asked the man if he could enter his mind. The man acquiesced and Xavier directed his wheelchair toward the cook. Closing his eyes, he began to read the man's thoughts.

Almost as soon as he had started, Xavier had finished. He snapped his head up in surprise and was suddenly perplexed.

'Kitty?'


	15. Another to Kill

Mystique, disguised as Kitty, patted her satiated stomach affectionately. Lazily, she let her eyes look at Rogue and Jubilee, who lied on their beds as well. "I... am so stuffed," Jubilee burped. Rogue and Mystique laughed at the image before them. Jubilee looked like a beached whale, lying on the top of her sheets, one arm limply draped over a large pink pillow.

The shape shifter smiled to herself. She had never experienced anything like this before: _friendship_. Never had Mystique even imagined that she would actually have feelings besides loathe and disgust for any member of the X-Men! Especially girls. Sighing out loud, she realized that she had become friends with the enemy and there was nothing that she could do.

Mortimer slunk silently through the green foliage. The day was slowly dwindling into night and soon, Mort would be completely concealed by the blackness. In a few hours, he would be able to spy inside the mansion from the windows. Hopefully, he would find Mystique.

Seeing as there would be nothing to do for another few hours, Mortimer allowed himself to drift into a light sleep. "No harm in takin' a kip," he yawned. Laying against the brick wall, hidden in by the projections of the trees, Mortimer fell into an alert asleep.

Charles Xavier directed his automatic wheelchair toward the girls' dorms. The smooth, black wheels made no sound as he traveled through the halls. Soon, he came to his destination: Kitty Pryde's room. Xavier lightly tapped on the door and awaited an answer.

Rogue groaned from her bed as she heard a knock on the door. "Someone get it," she yawned. When she received no reply, Rogue turned her head to look at her sleeping friends. She growled, seeing that no one else was planning to get it. Languidly, she rolled off of her bed and paced to the door.

Mystique watched Rogue intently as she walked toward the door. Raising herself off her bed a bit, Mystique took a small glance at Jubilee, and saw that she was asleep. Hastily, but in practiced silence, Mystique unlatched the nearest window and pushed it open.

Rogue, her back to her friends, opened the door somewhat groggily. Immediately, she perked up, "Oh! Hello Professor X. What can I do for you?" Rogue smiled as her teacher's soft expression became even warmer. "Good day, Rogue. Is Kitty in?" Rogue nodded, "Yes, Professor- One sec. Kit..." But when she turned around, Kitty was gone.

The imposter dropped from the windowsill and bent her knees to absorb the impact. Gracefully, Mystique landed on the soft grass and looked back up to the open window. All Clear. Quickly, she spun around and dashed away into the protection of the trees.

The shape shifter pressed up against the brick wall and breathed heavily. She knew that Xavier would catch on to her. Somehow, she knew that he was the one at the door. Closing her eyes for a minute, she recollected her situation. Suddenly, a large hand grasped her mouth and the other hand clasped her right knee from between her legs. Whoever this was, they knew how to stop someone for as long as they could.

A soft voice floated into Mystique's ears and told her to be quiet. She could recognize that beautiful British accent anywhere. Slowly, Mystique transformed. Kitty Pryde's body was replaced with deep blue scales; her chocolate, shoulder-length hair disappeared and fluidly transformed into a vibrant red. The small breasts the belonged to the teenager were now replaced- much to Mystique's relief. In a moment, the innocent X-Man had turned into the deadly, yet alluring member of the Brotherhood.

Mortimer smiled as he took his hand away from Mystique's mouth and let go of her knee. He watched as her unique yellow eyes twinkled with a mix of excitement and malice. Mort knew that she would succeed in killing the girl, but now what was going on? He stared at her, giving her his full attention, which was very difficult for him to do.

Mystique stared into Toad's liquid eyes; she revealed to him their problem. "Xavier knows something is wrong. I can't be Shadowcat any longer." Mort stared at her, the slightest bit of worry creeping onto his face. He spoke, letting his accent claim every word for his own, "So who's next up for killin'? Surely you could dispose of the other friend, right?"

To his dismay, the shape shifter shook her head. He didn't know that Mystique was apprehensive about killing the other girl- how could he? But to Mystique, _Jubilee_ wasn't just 'the other friend'. Jubilee was... _her_ friend. The blue mutant bit her tongue and came up with a suitable reply, "If Xavier knows that 'Kitty' has gone bad, he'll make sure to keep track on Marie and Jubilee..."

"I didn't know you were on a first name basis with the enemy." Toad slyly commented. Mystique ignored the remark and pressed on, "I think it would be wise to take the place of someone that Xavier already trusts. Like..." The female mutant thought for a moment, remembering every person she had encountered inside the mansion. Who would be perfect? Who would...

"I've got it," she breathed. "Tonight, I will dispose of Jean Grey."


	16. A Turn for the Worse

It was now five o'clock and there was no sign of Kitty Pryde. Rogue paced her room nervously as Jubilee's eyes tried to keep up with her friend's wandering form. "She jumped out of the window!" Rogue screamed, throwing up her hands in a rage, "The _window!_ Why wouldn't she talk to Professor X?"

Jubilee shrugged to herself and then in a stern voice, "Marie, calm down! I'm sure Kitty will come back. She was probably scared to death about getting in trouble with Xavier for stealing that food. Although," she took a deep breath, "we should be censured too. I mean, we ate the food just as much as Kitty did." Jubilee watched Rogue shake her head, "No. I think there's something else going on here that we don't know about. Kitty didn't just steal food, I can tell you that. Something else went on in that kitchen."

The two girls stood or sat in silence for a moment. No sound besides the soft rustling of the leaves outside could be heard as both teenagers found themselves in deep thought.

Rogue knew something was wrong, but she couldn't put her finger on it. A day ago, Kitty had started acting funny. Rogue tried to pass it off like it was nothing, but now it seemed unavoidable; she could not deny the feelings that she held inside of her. Kitty had appeared confused when Jubilee and herself had told her about the exams the next day. That was odd, because Kitty was always on top of things at school. She even looked forward to Exam Day to some extent!

Then there was the matter that Kitty had lagged behind on the way to their dorm room almost as if... as if she didn't know where to go. That had thoroughly confused Rogue. Kitty didn't seem like Kitty at all anymore. Had she suffered some mild amnesia somehow? 'No, that's ridiculous.' Marie thought. But then she considered another option: 'What if she _was_ someone else? But that would mean that...'

Rogue gasped and her body sunk to her bed. Her knees became weak and she couldn't hold herself up any longer. 'To do that, the mutant would have to be a shape shifter. But...' Rogue shook her head in denial, 'was that possible? Could the real Kitty be locked up somewhere or... dead?' She gulped. That had to be it. Kitty was gone, and Mystique had taken her place. But why?

Toad slunk through the darkness and peered into uncovered windows. His agile body scurried up the building with incredible ease as he looked for anything of interest. No such luck.

There were many open windows, but most belonged to many empty rooms. Few of the windows were covered with the thick drapes that hung from metal bars connected to the ceiling.

Toad made his way around to the back of the manor. Surely, there had to be something interesting... _'Toad, let me out. This isn't funny!' _Mortimer begged to be in control, but Toad had grown stronger. He sneered, "Right, and let you bugger-up the mission?"

_'The mission shouldn't even be taking place, Toad!'_ Mortimer screamed, but Toad pretended not to hear.

Suddenly, a mechanical screech echoed through the still night. Quickly, Toad leaped to the roof and peered over the edge out onto the front lawns. His eyes darted over the area for a moment and found the source: a large, muscular man exited his truck, casually tossing aside a cigar. For a moment, Toad remained in silence, but the seriousness of the situation sunk into his brain.

_The Wolverine was back_.

"Bloody hell!" Toad backed away from the ledge and crouched down. 'This was _not_ supposed to happen! Wolverine was not expected back for another day or so.' Toad's head hit his hands in distress and anger.

'_I told you this mission would fail.'_ Mortimer scolded Toad. "Quiet you prat!" Toad's voice was full of venom as he spat out the few words. But the mutant couldn't help thinking that Mortimer was right.

Sticking to the side of the building now, Toad reached inside of his coat pocket and produced a small silver object with a tiny black button occupying the center. Toad pressed the minute button with a gloved finger and waited. There was a small beeping sound coming from somewhere below him. The green mutant snapped his head downward and saw Mystique standing there. With a loud _thump_ he dropped to the ground.

"What the 'ell are you doin' out 'ere? You're supposed to be inside disposin' of the other mutant!" Mystique glared daggers at her comrade, "I'm sure that you've noticed the problem just as I have, _Toad_, or else you wouldn't have beeped me." The shape shifter held up an identical silver object to Toad's and crossed her arms.

"Wolverine is _not_ supposed to be here. The whole mission is now in jeopardy."


	17. Dagger of Abolishment

Toad watched Mystique slink back into the shadows. She had told him to wait for her signal until they went any further with the mission. The next couple steps had to be fast or they would fail yet again.

Mortimer had given up all hope of reclaiming his body. Toad had overwhelmed him and had possession of their actions now; there was nothing Mortimer could do. Toad was stronger, more ruthless and cruel. Mort just wanted to be free.

_And where do thoughts like that get you?_

The voice penetrated Mortimer's tightly pressed ears. He couldn't stand the way Toad mocked and condescended him, but there was nothing that he could do. Or was there?

Mystique silently traversed across the Xavier grounds without raising an alarm. She glanced around with her golden eyes and wondered just how she was going to get to Jean Grey without being caught. '_But I'm the Master of Disguise,' _she thought wickedly. And in no more than a moment, her blue-scaled body peeled away and revealed a new form. No longer was she the annoying Kitty Pryde; that disguise proved to have been wasted. The shape shifter wouldn't get anywhere without a confrontation.

Thinking that this new disguise was as perfect as it could be, Mystique made her way toward the mansion and opened the front door.

Toad crouched in the darkness, clutching the tiny silver com-device in his gloved hand. He waited impatiently as Mystique strode toward the manor in her new disguise. A lingering sense of doubt crossed his mind momentarily. 

_This will not work! The Wolverine is here. He'll find out for sure!_

"Stop your bloody whinin'," Toad shot back. "That queen won't even know we're here. Mystique'll kill the woman, take her place, lead the girl into some secluded area while I run a distraction, and our mission will be complete."

Toad spoke with conviction of such magnitude that Mortimer thought it was impossible. _How could he be so confident? _Mort shook his head internally. He knew as soon as the girl, Rogue, was captured, _he_ had to kill her. Not Toad, not Mystique, _Him._ This would prove that he was a part of the Brotherhood! This would finally decide his fate as a mutant!

This one act would destroy him.

Scott Summers walked leisurely down the comfortably lit hallways and smiled at the children as they passed him by. He was in search of his fiancé, Jean.

Still grinning from ear to ear, Scott finally found the door to her classroom and pushed it open. He had found who he was looking for.

"Hey, beautiful," he said to the redhead. He watched her look up at him with her piercing eyes, which danced with love as she gazed at him. "Scott," she almost whispered, "I missed you today! I hardly got to see you at all." Her last statement rose in audibility. Scott moved closer.

"I want us to do something. Just us. I want to take you somewhere romantic where we can be alone." He started to kiss her neck slowly and he felt her face go beet red.

"Scott," she laughed, "what on earth are you talking about? You know we have to stay at the school and teach... the children need us." She stroked his cheek affectionately as the expression on his face became one of disappointment. 

"Don't worry," she continued, "We'll be married soon and nothing is going to stop that." She smiled at him as he showed his pearly whites. But then a tremendous pain claimed her and she whisked her hands to the sharpness that beat against her temples. Something was wrong. She had felt it with Kitty too but... what did it mean?

_'There's nothing to worry about,' she thought with a sigh, 'Scott is here and he would never let anything happen to me.' _

Then curiosity claimed her as her headache subsided. "Where were you planning for us to go, Scott?" A broad grin spread across her lovers face as the question flew from her mouth. He bent closer to her ear and nuzzled her neck for a moment.

_That sudden sense of danger..._

"To Hell, my sweet. To Hell."

Jean's mind screamed at her to defend herself, but her attacker was much too quick. A treacherous feeling of pain washed over her as she felt her eyes being stabbed at. Blood ran down her rosy cheeks in crooked, crimson lines as her eye sockets were forced to separate from the rest of her body. She could not see the blood, but she felt it cascade down her face to her neck, then run its course over her chest where it stained her beige shirt.

This was what she had felt. This was the danger that she could not foresee. She had ignored her premonitions and had walked blindly into a trap.

Jean tried to scream, but the same sharp dagger that had wretched out her eyes immediately punctured her delicate throat. No sound would ever come from her vocal cords ever again.

'_Although, dead people don't talk anyway,' _Mystique chortled.

Hastily, she finished her duty and shoved the bleeding woman underneath the desk. The entire floor beneath the fresh corpse was dark red and the puddle crept farther and farther outward. The shape shifter chuckled to herself for a moment and then let her body phase into Jean Grey's. Nonchalantly, she picked up the com-device and pressed the small black button.


	18. Are You Ready?

The small beep and vibration of the com-device signaled that it was time for Toad to take his part in the mission. It was time for the distraction; it was almost time for the finale.

Without waiting another moment, Toad crashed through one of the many windows, right into a dorm room. Shrill screams filled his ears as the little girls that occupied this room ran out of the door and into the hallway. Toad loved it all. He breathed in the fear and hopped out of the room, following the terrified children. Then he cleanly knocked another door off of its hinges. Inside, three girls stared at him for a good moment before they uttered a sound.

All hell was breaking loose, and Toad was enjoying it immensely.

Mortimer screamed inside of Toad, but he wouldn't be heard. He could feel the blood pound and the adrenaline run in his own body. Nothing would stop Toad except for Toad himself. Whether Mortimer liked it or not, he had to watch everything that his comrade chose to do.

In a matter of minutes, more than half of the girl's dormitories had been raided. The girl, Rogue, still hadn't been found. But that didn't stop Toad; he knew that she was here. He would crush every door and every window until he found her. This was his mission as well, and he would not fail.

Only a couple more minutes were allowed to pass; Mortimer knew that the X-Men would soon appear and try to resolve the problem. They had to find the girl _fast!_ They had to find her _now!_

And finally, the mutants came upon the door to the room that held her. Toad sniffed the air with glee as his gloved hand stroked the wood frame. Then in a split second, the door came crashing down, splinters erupting from it from the powerful blow. And there she was.

Without a moment to think, Toad pounced on the frightened girl and grabbed her. He flung her into his arms and over his shoulder while leaping out of a nearby window. Glass flew everywhere, and the girl's screams were enough to make Mortimer sick, but thankfully, the mission was almost over and so far, they had not been caught.

"Let go of me!" She screamed.

Mortimer heard Toad reply, but he didn't want to listen. His sadistic other found way too much happiness in this act and Mortimer did not approve. _Why can't we just leave? Let us go back to the island and rot away until we all reach the demise that we deserve._

Toad laughed at him, 'Do you honestly think that you'll be around for that long, Mort? I don't.'

No more was said, for a small beeping sound came from the com-device. That was the next signal. Mystique was in position and it was time to stage little Rogue's escape.

She was not even a mere burden for Toad, for his muscular physique could handle almost anything, but it was time to let her go. _Yes. _Toad thought wickedly. _Run. It's time to run. _And then he let her go. He made her think that she had overpowered him for some reason. But no, she didn't know the true answer. She didn't know that life would be taken from her in a very, very short time.

Scott and Logan ran up the stairs swiftly and turned into the girl's dormitories. Screams filled the Xavier mansion, piercing screams that almost shattered the very windows of the manor. It was a good thing that Siren had spent the night in the MedLab, for her yells were absolutely devastating. 

The two X-Men searched every dorm room and noticed that the doors had already been conveniently knocked to the floor.

"Is everyone here?" Logan asked.

Scott shook his head and replied, "I don't know. We'll need a roll count done if we want to find out for sure. But I want to know what the _hell_ is going on here! Who would just break into the mansion, cause chaos, and then leave?"

Wolverine narrowed his eyes as he gathered in his surroundings. He sniffed the fear-stricken environment and a thought suddenly came to him.

"A Brotherhood member," he said blandly. "A green one."

Scott looked at him for a moment and nodded. "So you think it was Toad?"

"Who else could it be? And I trust my nose more than your eye, Cyclops."

Scott huffed at Logan's remark but didn't say anything. If Logan thought it was Toad, it very well might be. But one thought pulled at Scott's mind and wouldn't relent: _Why?_

Rogue ran like she had never run before. She had to get away! She needed to find safety! Frantically, she jerked her head in all directions, searching for somewhere to hide. Alas, there were no places that she saw, and she knew that her assailant would find her nevertheless. In fact, she could hear him bounding behind her. He was arrogant in his movements; he stayed just a tiny bit away as she continued to flee. He knew that he would catch her.

And that was when she collided with someone else.

"Jean!" Rogue screamed.

Her professor nodded to her and focused her attention on the Brotherhood member. Rogue watched with relief as her attacker froze in his crouching stance and was immobilized.

"Come with me, Rogue," Jean said.

Rogue wasted no time in accepting. All she wanted to do was get away from that monster that had grabbed her. Willingly, she followed Jean Grey into the forest and deeper into the night.

Toad unfroze himself and chuckled, "That stupid girl! She is gullible to think that I was really frozen." He gave another small laugh and headed in the direction that Mystique had gone.

"Mort, me friend, it's almost time for you to do your duty. You ready?"

What a question to ask. But really: _Was he ready?_

"I don't know, Toad," Mortimer managed to actually use his lips. "I don't want to kill her."

"Ah, but you have to, mate," Toad laughed, "You think you have a choice, but really, you don't."


	19. Closer To Murder

Toad did not allow Mortimer possession of their seemingly-shared body just yet. The sadistic mutant whispered to himself:

"I need to make absolutely sure that you're going to go _exactly_ where we want you. Then when we get to Mystique, it will be my time to sit back and watch. Mind you, you'll have to be somewhat quick, Mort, me friend. The Wolverine won't be easy to distract, nor will the others. Now, there's a good lad. Just relax until I hand over our body."

But Mortimer did not want to relax. He did not _want_ to kill the girl. If only there was someway that he could stop everything from happening! If only there were some way that he could pretend to kill Rogue... But alas, there was no such thing that would ever fool the Brotherhood. Mortimer was in his final stages of decision.

But what if he refused to kill the girl? The Wolverine, a mutant the Brotherhood particularly despised for his keen senses, was not easily strayed and Mort knew that the wild mutant would come for his X-comrade.

The amphibian thought even further.

_What if he sacrificed himself?_

Ridiculous. That would not solve a bloody thing! Not _one. bloody. thing._

And Toad, no doubt, would be keeping close watch on Mortimer's actions. His worse half knew how to override Mortimer. He knew how to make Mort stumble and release his hold upon his own body. Toad knew this and took particular relish in the fact that he had so much power over his... better half.

_'And so it begins',_ Toad said mentally to Mortimer. '_Soon, her blood will spill on the cold ground. Soon her life will be dripping from your tinted hands! Her sacrifice is our survival.'_

A minor pause broke apart Toad's vicious speech. But then perhaps for added flair, he spat into Mortimer's brain:

'_And there's nothing you can do about it.'_

But oh, how Mortimer wished it wasn't so.

Mystique ran rapidly through the dense foliage, her disguised hair whipping slightly behind her in the almost nonexistent wind. The daft teenager ran unsuspectingly behind her, pushing her way past the stinging wood of the tight branches. She whimpered softly as every branch punctured her clothing and connected with her fragile skin. Some sharp limbs pushed themselves completely through her nightshirt, drawing eager blood. Tiny bits of leaf clung to her mussed hair and undoubtedly, tiny creatures began to crawl through her strands of hair to her very scalp.

The shape shifter was indifferent to the small gasps and cries that Rogue was uttering. But Mystique didn't even know the girl as Rogue; she simply knew her as another objective.

After some time, Rogue's body could no longer keep up her own weight and she felt herself beginning to fall toward the ground.

"Professor!" Rogue said, trying desperately to keep up with who she thought was Jean. "Professor, I can't run any more; my legs are tired! Why are we running so far anyway?"

Mystique sneered as every question was emitted from the teenager's horrid mouth. But nevertheless, she had to play like she was the teacher and Rogue was her student.

"It's only a bit farther, Rogue," the imposter yelled behind her. "Xavier told us all to meet at a safe location far from here. He saved this for any time that we might be attacked unexpectedly. After all that has happened, he was worried that another invasion could do much more damage."

But Mystique had not realized that Rogue had stopped running and was now looking at her like she was some sort of ghost.

After a moment of not hearing a reply, Mystique spun on her heel and faced the trembling student.

"Rogue, we must get there quickly! The other students are coming as well; we've got to get away!"

But Rogue simply stood there, her lips twitching at the corners of her mouth as if she wanted to speak. Mystique clearly had _no_ time for this at all. She began to walk toward her objective.

"Rogue, please! The Brotherhood is attacking the mansion. Xavier wants all students escorted to safety!"

Finally, the teen made eye contact with her presumed teacher and spoke quietly:

"Professor X never told us about this "safe place". He always said if we were to hear anything like that, we were to know that it wasn't true..."

Mystique felt herself shake internally. She could kill the kid right now if she wanted to... Trying not to snarl the words, the shape shifter reached out a hand and put on her best sympathetic face. If she wanted the objective completed, she had to do her part and perform it correctly.

"Rogue," she pleaded, "I'm not leaving this spot without you! If you're not going to follow me, then I have no choice but to stay here and fend off anyone that comes near." Taking a hopeful breath, Mystique waited for the girl's reaction.

And then suddenly, a smile appeared on Rogue's face.

"I knew it was you, Professor! For a second, I thought you were Mystique and I was expecting you to tell me that you were going to leave me here while you went ahead..." She smiled wider. "But that's what makes you and her different. You _know_ who you are and Mystique doesn't even personify her victims at all!"

Mystique took a sharp inhalation of air. It took all of her strength, everything within her to not rip the girl's head off. It was a good thing that she hadn't gone with her _own_ idea of doing things. She had a feeling that Rogue would relate more to her plans if she had used a sickening speech like that. But no matter what had just happened, she had nearly completed her part of the mission and Mortimer's turn was just around this corner...

Toad bounded off in the direction that he had gone over with Mystique. She, of course, had taken the longer route to confuse the girl. Toad, however, would simply travel the miniscule amount of space and free Mortimer to fulfill his part of the mission at hand. Yes, everything was going _exactly_ to plan.

In no time, the amphibian had made his way to the discussed location and he now skulked in the shadows, awaiting his comrade's signal. He heard her disguised voice sound just meters away from where he waited.

"I suppose we're the first here," Mystique said softly, taking a seat on a ponderous boulder. She gestured toward another large rock and Rogue quickly sat down upon it and tucked her feet underneath her. Looking around, she noticed that she had never seen any of these surroundings before. 

There were numerous boulders littering the ground and barely any grass was in sight of the circular clearing the trees made. One rock formation was behind her that was roughly five feet tall and two feet wide; it sloped toward the ground and looked somewhat like a child's slide.

And then she heard rustling inside some trees just to her left. Quickly, she peered over her shoulder and caught sight of nothing. Nothing but more rocks and trees. Worriedly, her head snapped in the direction of her professor, but Jean Grey was gone.

"Professor?" The girl yelled cautiously. "Professor, where are you?" Her voice grew more anxious and suddenly she spun around and saw the exact mutant who had been terrorizing the mansion some time ago.

He stood there, arrogantly poised in front of her, his green skin enhanced by the brilliant moonlight. Rogue wanted to run, but she stood stock-still, afraid for her life.

After a moment the mutant smiled at her cruelly and whispered, "Hello, my dear."


	20. Killing One Life Brings Another

Frozen with peril, Rogue stared at the silhouetted figure. Furiously looking around, she found no easy way of escaping. All around her was thick, dark foliage, which would surely make it harder for her to get away. Raising her head toward the sky, she felt the few premature drops of rain splash into her teary eyes.

"W... What do you want with me?" She managed to choke out.

But Toad merely stepped closer and tilted his head. He didn't speak, but advanced slowly upon his prey.

Rogue thrashed inside of her mind. _Think!_ But no thoughts came. _Run!_ But she had no energy. _No!_ Yes, she was doomed.

Flashes of memories burst through her skull. Everyone that she had ever met shook her hand once more in her thoughts. Every person who had ever smiled at her, grinned in her direction once again. And this would be the last time she would ever see those people again...

As Rogue fought with her inner demons, Mortimer fought with himself.

_Toad, I don't want to kill her! I don't want to! Don't make me. Please, don't make me... No..._

But still, he advanced. Still, he came closer and closer to the innocent girl, which he was meant to destroy.

"Don't be afraid, girl," Mortimer found himself saying. "I'm only here to put your torture to rest."

Rogue backed against the thick trunk of a tree and stared at her attacker's face. His abnormal green skin appeared slimier, more disgustingly yellow by the minute as each raindrop fell from the sky. The absence of his goggles made his eyes look smaller and more fierce as he peered at her through thick, black lashes. Each step he took was in crouch position- a ready-to-attack stance that she had seen before.

Breathing heavily, Rogue sized up her adversary. He was somewhat short and appeared to be of stocky stature. But that all was deceiving as she recalled. Rogue had seen this particular mutant fight. She had seen him kill people and mutants alike. She had seen his strength and agility, and she knew that there was nothing that she could do.

He watched her in a daze. Her chest rose and fell with each hurried breath and tears mixed with rain fell from her eyes, ran down her cheeks, and splashed inaudibly to the muddy ground. Carefully, he took note of her. She wasn't as small as some of the teenagers from the manor. Curiously, she was far more well endowed than any other student he had seen running away from him and screaming in terror. 

Rogue.

She wasn't running away; perhaps she was facing what was coming to her? Perhaps she had realized her fate and was accepting it? No. That couldn't be it. But he knew that he had to be careful. She was wearing her gloves, a sure sign that he could attack safely and then get the hell out of there. But if she removed them?

Mortimer shook his head. This Rogue girl seemed to be an easy kill, so why couldn't he just get it over with? Why couldn't he just pounce on her and breathe in the intoxicating scent of victory? Toad said it would be easy...

_Just focus on her pain and watch yours just wash away..._

Yes. Yes, he could do this. But when to attack? Did she sense that he was apprehensive? What was she thinking? He knew that she was afraid, as she stood stock still, arching her back against the trunk of a tree.

He watched her breathe for a moment and narrowed his eyes.

_It is now or never._

Then with one bound, he was on top of her, forcing his body to pin her down so that he may finish what he had been sent to do. 

But before he could get his grip, she slipped from beneath him and ran across the clearing, toward the huge stone construction that had been behind her earlier. Quickly, she whisked her hands toward her gloves and fumbled with them. The rain now beat more heavily and she couldn't get the tight leather to slip from her fingers. 

_Her enemy approached._

'Rogue, come on! Come on, Rogue!' 

And finally, she threw both of her gloves to the earth and defiantly peered down at her attacker. Now she was ready to fight.

"Come get me, you slimy son of a bitch!"

The amphibian needed no further invitation. He leapt to her level, on the slippery stone slide and stared at her maliciously.

"Those aren't words for such a pretty lass like yourself," he taunted.

Rogue spat, her southern accent sharp, "Then why don't you educate me, _Toad_?"

Following her threat, Rogue kicked from the ground and sailed feet first into Mortimer's chest. Catching him amazingly off guard, she knocked him back down to the cold earth and landed beside him in crouch position.

Mort lied there for a moment and then turned toward the girl.

"You're gonna wish you never did that."

And springing up from the mud, he launched himself at Rogue with such speed that she barely knew what hit her. Both mutants flew backward and Rogue felt her head spin from the impact. Before she could think further, Rogue jumped on top of Mortimer and began to claw at his face, leaving scratches that emitted tiny drops of blood.

Lying beneath her, Mort could feel the life being drained out of him as the girl no longer clawed at him, but firmly planted her palms down on his face. Striving to kick her away, he felt himself becoming weaker and weaker.

_Come on Toad!_

Finally, his legs responded and forced Rogue back. She stumbled slightly but smiled as she imitated his fighting stance. Mortimer gaped as he realized that she now held his powers. In a split second, she was behind him. Faster than she had ever moved in her life, she swept Mort off of his feet and he landed in a huge puddle.

Both mutants were now completely soaked to the bone and mud adorned their clothing. Feeling defeated, Mortimer lied in the mud puddle for a moment.

_You bloody coward! Get up and finish her off! FINISH HER!_

But when Mort didn't make any move to attack, Toad became more forceful:

_I knew you couldn't do it. I knew you'd never amount to anything! And look, a girl is beating you. An _X-Men_ girl at that! Ha! So this finally proves it. I AM better._

And that was it.

Fiercely, Mortimer pushed up from the ground and back-flipped over Rogue. As she spun around, he launched his tongue to grab her feet and trip her up.

"Huh!" She yelled, caught unawares.

Now Mort was over her, pinning her so that she had no way of escaping. She was defenseless; she was going to die.

"Have I taught you enough yet?" he jeered. And slowly, he produced a blade and ran it across her cheeks, careful not to draw blood.

"I think... I think I'll start with your hands, so it will be harder for you to steal anyone's powers ever again."

Her sharp cries were all that could be heard as Mortimer set to work on her. Slowly, he spun her wrist around in his gloved hands and exposed the tender flesh of her inner arm. In a matter of seconds, he had peeled away the skin and opened each vein. Her blood flowed to the muddy earth and seeped into the ground.

Next were her hands. Then, softly, he ran his protected fingers over her face and traced the curves of her lips. Bending down, he lightly kissed them and smiled at her.

"Goodbye, my sweet."

Hastily, he plunged the knife into her chest and felt it unmistakably pierce her heart. With another cry of pain, Rogue screamed into the night as much as her body would allow. And then, everything was silent.

Suddenly, Mort whipped around as the sound of approaching feet fluttered into his ears.

"Easy there, you wouldn't want to hurt another mutant, would you?"

Mystique neared Mortimer and placed one hand on his shoulder.

"You've done it, Toad. You've done it and we're all so proud of you. Now, you won't have to do anything like this ever again, just..."

"No," Toad said sharply. He waited for a moment and watched the blood trickle from Rogue's lifeless body. And then he grinned.

"I like it," he whispered darkly. "Now, tell me, what else do you want me to do?"


End file.
